Peacock Shawl and Purse
Penny Muncaster-Jewell


Some Victorian purses I saw at an exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum back in the seventies, inspired this little purse. This is my interpretation of them. Theirs used real peacock feathers, but I thought these are just as pretty!

I digitized the peacock feather and then used three different colors of Angelina fiber to enhance the peacock image. Onyx, Rose Gold, and Emerald were used to simulate the eye of the peacock. I took the design and used them to create a stunning shawl and purse. To create the stem for the feathers I used a braiding foot and 5 colors of YLI Candlelight thread (Gold, Lime Green, Midnight, Royal Blue, and Black) Using King Star M4 metallic thread and one of the fancy stitches on my sewing machine (the turkey foot pattern!) I stitched the stem down. The braiding foot has 5 holes, and each color is passed through a single hole. The foot keeps the threads flat.

I did some feathers with and some without the Angelina. The purse uses black synthetic suede and black silk organza, and has a pull tie closure. The shawl is done on black silk organza. Each panel was made separately and then joined together using beads at approximately 2 inch intervals. This was loosely based on the technique used in Kayla Kenningtons Seams and Shapes 918.

This is a great travel outfit as it takes no space and easily dresses up a plain black dress or pants and tops.

The Sky is not the limit, nor are the stars. It’s your imagination!